Canaanite religion
Canaanite religion refers to the group of Ancient Semitic religions practiced by the Canaanites living in the ancient Levant from at least the early Bronze Age through the first centuries of the Common Era. Canaanite religion was polytheistic, and in some cases monolatristic. Although the term caananite is ambiguous, it is used to refer to a few groups including the philistines that were secondary Iron Age states of the interior that were not ruled by Arameans—a separate and closely related ethnic group. Caaninite religion is important for contextualizing some of early hebrew history, although not much is known about it outside of various depictions from other groups. This is because judaism in many ways grew out of its influence and from that of the earlier mesopotamian mythology. As such, this page will be rather short, but will describe a few figures relevant to their interaction with judaism, and how they show up in-game. Also, see the sumerian and babylonan mythologies to show some of where the canaanite religion derives from. Cosmology Canaanites believed that following physical death, the npš (usually translated as "soul") departed from the body to the land of Mot (Death). Bodies were buried with grave goods, and offerings of food and drink were made to the dead to ensure that they would not trouble the living. Dead relatives were venerated and sometimes asked for help. However, none of the inscribed tablets found in 1929 in the Canaanite city of Ugarit has revealed a cosmology. Any idea of one is often reconstructed from the much later Phoenician text by Philo of Byblos, after much Greek and Roman influence in the region. In Canaanite mythology there were twin mountains Targhizizi and Tharumagi which hold the firmament up above the earth-circling ocean, thereby bounding the earth. Some scholars suggest that El Shaddai is a derivation of a Semitic stem that appears in the Akkadian shadû ("mountain") and shaddā`û or shaddû`a ("mountain-dweller"), one of the names of Amurru. Philo of Byblos states that Atlas was one of the Elohim, which would clearly fit into the story of El Shaddai as "God of the Mountain(s)." Harriet Lutzky has presented evidence that Shaddai was an attribute of a Semitic goddess, linking the epithet with Hebrew šad "breast" as "the one of the Breast". The idea of two mountains being associated here as the breasts of the Earth, fits into the Canaanite mythology quite well. The ideas of pairs of mountains seem to be quite common in Canaanite mythology (similar to Horeb and Sinai in the Bible). The late period of this cosmology makes it difficult to tell what influences (Roman, Greek, or Hebrew) may have informed Philo's writings. Mythology In the Baal Cycle, Ba'al Hadad is challenged by and defeats Yam, using two magical weapons (called "Driver" and "Chaser") made for him by Kothar-wa-Khasis. Afterward, with the help of Athirat and Anat, Ba'al persuades El to allow him a palace. El approves, and the palace is built by Kothar-wa-Khasis. After the palace is constructed, Ba'al gives forth a thunderous roar out of the palace window and challenges Mot. Mot enters through the window and swallows Ba'al, sending him to the Underworld. With no one to give rain, there is a terrible drought in Ba'al's absence. The other deities, especially El and Anat, are distraught that Ba'al has been taken to the Underworld. Anat goes to the Underworld, attacks Mot with a knife, grinds him up into pieces, and scatters him far and wide. With Mot defeated, Ba'al is able to return and refresh the Earth with rain. Religious practices. Archaeological investigations at the site of Tell el-Safiad have found the remains of donkeys, as well as some sheep and goats in Early Bronze Age layers, dating to 4900 years ago which were imported from Egypt in order to be sacrificed. One of the sacrificial animals, a complete donkey, was found beneath the foundations of a building, leading to speculation this was a 'foundation deposit' placed before the building of a residential house. It is considered virtually impossible to reconstruct a clear picture of Canaanite religious practices. Although child sacrifice was known to surrounding peoples there is no reference to it in ancient Phoenician or Classical texts. The biblical representation of Canaanite religion is always negative. Canaanite religious practice had a high regard for the duty of children to care for their parents, with sons being held responsible for burying them, and arranging for the maintenance of their tombs. Canaanite deities such as Baal were represented by figures which were placed in shrines often on hilltops, or 'high places' surrounded by groves of trees, such as is condemned in the Hebrew Bible, in Hosea (v 13a) which would probably hold the Asherah pole, and standing stones or pillars. Gods El or Il is the supreme god of the Canaanite religion and the supreme god of the Mesopotamian Semites in the pre-Sargonic period. It was also a term used more generically for gods in general (especially when said as elohim). Because the word sometimes refers to a god other than the great god Ēl, it is frequently ambiguous as to whether Ēl followed by another name means the great god Ēl with a particular epithet applied or refers to another god entirely. For example, in the Ugaritic texts, ʾil mlk is understood to mean "Ēl the King" but ʾil hd as "the god Hadad". For the Canaanites and the ancient Levantine region as a whole, Ēl or Il was the supreme god, the father of mankind and all creatures. He also fathered many gods, most importantly Hadad (when not seen as a son of dagon), Yam, and Mot, each sharing similar attributes to the Greco-Roman gods: Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades respectively. "El" (Father of Heaven / Saturn) and his major son: "Hadad" (Father of Earth / Jupiter), are symbolized both by the bull, and both wear bull horns on their headdresses. The Hebrew form is a generic word for god that could be used for any god, including Hadad, Moloch, or Yahweh. Before El's revelation with the name of Yahweh, it is said in Genesis 14:18–20 that Abraham accepted the blessing of El, when Melchizedek, the king of Salem and high priest of its deity El Elyon blessed him. One scholarly position is that the identification of Yahweh with Ēl is late, that Yahweh was earlier thought of as only one of many gods, and not normally identified with Ēl. Another is that in much of the Hebrew Bible the name El is an alternate name for Yahweh, but in the Elohist and Priestly traditions it is conceived as an earlier name than Yahweh. Mark Smith has argued that Yahweh and El were originally separate, but were considered synonymous from very early on. In some places, especially in Psalm 29, Yahweh is clearly envisioned as a storm god, something not true of Ēl so far as we know (although true of his son, Ba'al Hadad). It is Yahweh who is prophesied to one day battle Leviathan the serpent, and slay the dragon in the sea in Isaiah 27:1. The slaying of the serpent in myth is a deed attributed to both Ba’al Hadad and ‘Anat in the Ugaritic texts, but not to Ēl. The documentary hypothesis developed originally in the 1870s, argues that these that different authors were responsible for editing stories from a polytheistic religion into those of a monotheistic religion. Inconsistencies that arise between monotheism and polytheism in the texts are reflective of this hypothesis. Such mythological motifs are variously seen as late survivals from a period when Yahweh held a place in theology comparable to that of Hadad at Ugarit; or as late henotheistic/monotheistic applications to Yahweh of deeds more commonly attributed to Hadad; or simply as examples of eclectic application of the same motifs and imagery to various different gods. Similarly, it is argued inconclusively whether Ēl Shaddāi, Ēl ‘Ôlām, Ēl ‘Elyôn, and so forth, were originally understood as separate divinities. So it seems the Israelites initially worshiped Yahweh alongside a variety of Canaanite gods and goddesses, including El, Asherah and Baal. In the period of the Judges and the first half of the monarchy, El and Yahweh became conflated in a process of religious syncretism. As a result, ’el became a generic term meaning "god", as opposed to the name of a worshipped deity, and epithets such as El Shaddai came to be applied to Yahweh alone, deconstructing the worship of El and strengthening the position of Yahweh. Features of Baal, El and Asherah were absorbed into the Yahweh religion, Asherah possibly becoming embodied in the feminine aspects of the Shekinah or divine presence, and Baal's nature as a storm and weather god becoming assimilated into Yahweh's own identification with the storm. In the next stage the Yahweh religion separated itself from its Canaanite heritage As such, while aspects of yhvh are considered to be derived from caananite beliefs, and to have originated in a polytheistic context, the degree and way it happened is still ambiguous. Megaten of course depicts yhvh as a god who was originally a polytheistic god among others, before raising in power, and ultimately becoming the god with power over the entire world. Notably, other godly race entities and other beings who are depicted as avatars of the lord are also depicted as beings that may have originally been separate entities before uniting. So the entire collective represents absorbing of various ideas into one idea of the supreme god. Asherah is a Semitic mother goddess who was the wife of the chief god El. She is commonly referred to as the 'Queen of Heaven,' whose worship, in the Old Testament, was vehemently opposed by the prophet Jeremiah. It seems that some carried this over to hebrew worship as well, considering her the wife of yahweh at times, with this only being fully purged after the exile (this being based likely on the derivation of and conflation of yhvh with el). But the old testament is filled with emphasis on the need to downplay and purge these aspects, focusing on worship of yhvh alone. In the Ugaritic texts (before 1200 BC) Athirat is almost always given her full title rabat ʾAṯirat yammi, "Lady Athirat of the Sea" or as more fully translated "she who treads on the sea." Her other main divine epithet was qaniyatu ʾilhm) which may be translated as "the creatrix of the Gods (Elohim)". In those texts, Athirat is the consort of the god El; there is one reference to the 70 sons of Athirat, presumably the same as the 70 sons of El. Some consider her to be linked to or derived in some way from ishtar, although she has many differences from that figure. In strange journey she is depicted as the true form of asura, working on the chaos side. She says she is filled with love and fury, and how the power of demons is the power of destruction, which is needed to cleanse the world of the harm humans are causing to it. Note how along with tiamat and morax and arguably mitras she is part of SJs theme of many of the major chaos players being more about old gods demonized by yhvh than about fallen angels. Note how asherah as the bride of el is seen as something that also may have inspired the concept of the shekinah or feminine presence of god. Baal is a Semitic title that means Master or Lord. While it can actually refer to a large number of different deities, Baal in this case refers to a Canaan god of rain, fertility, agriculture and thunder called Hadad. The name Baal, or Ba'al, is used as a substitute in some texts and in common modern usage. This is probably derived from the fact that, in ancient Canaan, only priests were allowed to utter the divine name, in much the same way as in Judaism where only priests were allowed to utter the name of God (YHVH), so common people simply referred to him as Baal. Baal hadad was a figure who although developed on babylonia is more known for his appearance in later caananite religion which was derived from it. In his mythology, he was pitted against yam, fighting against him with the help of anat. In many games, such as MTII and iva, baal is treated as the godly form of beelzebub. Although historically, it is ambiguous whether beelzebub is meant to refer to baal hadad. In Iv it is inverted, with baal referring to beelzebub as his true form. Both associations going to show that the demon beelzebub was at any rate derived from the baals that the hebrews were at odds with. and to show that many of the demons were not fallen angels, but rather demonized foreign gods. Which ties to in Iv when you are told that the origin of demons was the gods of babylon. Baal, esepcially due to the association with beelzebub always represents chaos when he appears. Obviously in keeping with the depiction of baals as enemies of the hebrews. In nocturne, a god called baal avatar sponsors the reason of yosuga, which is based on chaotic ideology, although not called chaos due to how nocturne world is arranged. Despite being chaotic, baal is followed by angels, which may be in reference to how certain angels have aspects that were inspired by earlier babylonian lore, and so he is once again reclaiming them. (this was referenced earlier on, with in SMTII the art for the cherub statues was designed to look like babylonian lamassu, although ironically not the in-game sprites, which looked more like a sphinx). Notably, in devil survivor, baal and beelzebub are depicted as different demons. Anat is A Syrian Goddess associated with war, as well as love and sex. She's the sister and wife of the Phoenician deity Baal. She avenges her brother by killing Mot and bringing him back from the land of the dead. The continuous cycle signifies the changing of seasons. In the Ugaritic Baal Cycle, ‘Anat is a violent war-goddess, a maiden (btlt ‘nt) who is the sister and, according to a much disputed theory, the lover of the great god Ba‘al Hadad. Ba‘al is usually called the son of Dagan and sometimes the son of El, who addresses ‘Anat as "daughter". Either relationship is probably figurative. In a fragmentary passage from Ugarit, Syria ‘Anat appears as a fierce, wild and furious warrior in a battle, wading knee-deep in blood, striking off heads, cutting off hands, binding the heads to her torso and the hands in her sash, driving out the old men and townsfolk with her arrows, her heart filled with joy. "Her character in this passage anticipates her subsequent warlike role against the enemies of Baal". She helps baal defeat yam, who was a favorite son of el, and rival to baal. She commonly shows up as a demon in-game, of the megami race, though not in a very major role most of the time. Astarte is A goddess worshiped under many names throughout the Mediterranean, being seen as derived from the earlier godess ishtar. She is a goddess associated with fertility, love, and war along with being the deification of Venus. She is often paired with anat, as a duo. In Abrahamic lore she is known as Ashtoreth and is seen by them as a Canaanite fertility goddess as well as a productive power of nature itself. Solomon built a temple to her, which was described as a great folly, and it was later torn down. In Phenician countries she was the female counterpart of Baal, and was no doubt worshiped with him by those Hebrews who at times became his devotees. This is proved by the fact that Baalim and Ashtaroth are used together several times in the bible like the Assyrian "ilani u ishtarati" for "gods and goddesses." Statues of her would be found throughout Israel with her symbol the crescent moon horns. She is sometimes mistaken for Asherah, but both Ashtoreth and Asherah are different deities even though the two do share the title of Queen of Heaven. She was eventually demonized into the demon Astaroth. She is a counterpart deity to Ishtar and the two are often associated with the other, likely being derived from the same source. A big theme in chaos is these demonized gods restoring their original forms, in order to function as gods of nature or chaos again. Yam (also Yamm) is the god of the sea in the Canaanite pantheon. Yam takes the role of the adversary of Baal in the Ugaritic Baal Cycle. Of all the gods, despite being the champion of El, Yam holds special hostility against Baal Hadad, son of Dagon. Yam is a deity of the sea and his palace is in the abyss associated with the depths, or Biblical tehom, of the oceans. Yam is the deity of the primordial chaos and represents the power of the sea, untamed and raging; he is seen as ruling storms and the disasters they wreak, and was an important divinity to the maritime Phoenicians. The gods cast out Yam from the heavenly mountain Sappan (modern Jebel Aqra; Sappan is cognate to Tsephon). The fight of Baal-Hadad with Yam has long been equated with the Chaoskampf mytheme in Mesopotamian mythology in which a god fights and destroys a "dragon" or sea monster; the seven-headed dragon Lotan is associated closely with him and Yam is often described as the serpent. Both Mesopotamian Tiamat and Biblical Leviathan are adduced as reflexes of this narrative, as is the fight of Zeus with Typhon in Greek mythology. Although he is never in a major plot-role, yam shows up, called ym in a few games, and in apocalypse tiamat can transform into ym, implying it is a similar later version of the same story. Mot is The Semitic god of death, who presides over the underworld, and would continuously attempt to devour the god Baal every few years. This exchange continued for a time until Mot's own father threatened to overturn his throne if the conflict did not end. He is one of the sons of el. He was the ancient Canaanite god of death and the Underworld. He was worshipped by the people of Ugarit, by the Phoenicians, and also by the Hebrews of the Old Testament. The main source of information about his role in Canaanite mythology comes from the texts discovered at Ugarit, but he is also mentioned in the surviving fragments of Philo of Byblos's Greek translation of the writings of the Phoenician Sanchuniathon and also in various books of the Old Testament. In Hebrew scriptures, Death ("Maweth") is sometimes personified as a devil or angel of death (e.g., Habakkuk 2:5; Job 18:13). In both the Book of Hosea and the Book of Jeremiah, Maweth/Mot is mentioned as a deity to whom Yahweh can turn over Judah as punishment for worshiping other gods. If yahweh was derived from el, then mot being a son of el is in keeping with this depiction. In nocturne, Mot appears as one of the Assembly of Nihilo's generals, guarding the Diet Building at Nagata-Cho. Along with Surt, Mithra and Mada, Mot twisted the Diet into a maze of wandering halls, fake doors and optical illusions. in raidou 2 there is a side mission where he tries to come to earth, and offers raidou eternal life, saying it will be accomplished by merging the worlds of life and death. It is possible that appearing in the catholic church is a reference to his ambiguous historical relationship to yahweh. In strange journey he uses the quote: "What wilt thou gain by fighting me god of death and meaninglessness? Doth more meaninglessness await a meaningless battle, or will it be answered by creation? Regardless, I shall destroy thee. On this stage where Death playeth its music, I shall scatter the embers of thy life." He also shows up in purgatorium in IV on the side of the angels. This may be a reference to the biblical part of mot being described as something god can turn people over to. The Hebrew biblical word for death is "mot" or "mavet." Several biblical verses personify mavet, such as the following, from which the concept of death as the "grim reaper" may be derived: "Death (mavet) has climbed in through our windows and has entered our fortresses; it has cut off the children from the streets and the young men from the public squares." The biblical story of the prophet Elijah's battle with the prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18) is also related to Mot's struggle with Baal. The background of the story involves a terrible drought—a curse brought by Mot in Canaanite myth, but by Yahweh according to Elijah—and a contest between the prophets of Baal and Elijah for control of the high place and altar at Mount Carmel. The people of Israel are torn between belief in the Hebrew God, who is Lord of both life and death, and the Canaanite religion, in which life and rain belong to Baal, while drought and death belong to Mot. To propitiate Baal, his priests engage in a self-mutilating ritual, recapitulating the story of El and Anath, who lacerated themselves while mourning Baal's death prior to his resurrection. Elijah proves God's superiority over Baal first by a miracle in which God consumes Elijah's sacrifice with fire from heaven, and later by God's providing rain to end the drought. In Israelite monotheistic context, both the drought and the rain are brought by one sovereign deity, and the victory of Elijah over Baal's prophets served to demonstrate this. So the appropriation of aspects of a story of mot versus baal into yahweh, and him being personified as yahweh's tool of death gives context for why he would show up alongside the angels in IV. Dagon was a major northwest Semitic god, reportedly of grain and agriculture. He was worshiped by the early Amorites and by the inhabitants of the cities of Ebla and Ugarit. He was also a major member, or perhaps head, of the pantheon of the Biblical Philistines. The Hebrew Bible, in an attempt to vilify the opposing religion, narrates that his temple was destroyed by a human sacrifice for him, Samson. His ultimate origin was back in babylon, though not until later on. He shows up in SMTI as tyrant race, and occasionally in other games. Dagon's appearance as a sea monster in the series was likely inspired by H.P. Lovecraft's depiction of the figure, before archaeologists learned more about him. He is often depicted as the father of baal Hadad. Baʿal Berith ("Lord of the Covenant") and El Berith ("God of the Covenant") are two gods, or one god, worshiped in Shechem, in ancient Israel. Judges is the only Biblical book that mentions Baʿal Berith and El Berith. It is not clear whether they are separate forms of the gods Baʿal and El or are actually one god. Scholars suppose that he or they may have been worshipped for connections to fertility and vegetation, based on another passage in Judges.5 Also unclear is what covenant or covenants are referred to by the name Berith. Elsewhere, some of the Shechemites are called "men of Hamor";6 this is compared to "sons of Hamor", which in the ancient Middle East referred to people who had entered into a covenant sealed by the sacrifice of a hamor, an ass. "Children" or "sons of Hamor" itself appears in Genesis and Joshua, in both of which, as in Judges, Hamor is called the father of Shechem. Genesis also features a man named Hamor who ruled in the area of Shechem and had a son named Shechem. Rabbinic tradition equates Baʿal Berith with Beelzebub, the god of Philistine Ekron. Belberith is a demon in devil survivor, presented as the strongest demon in the war of bel, with only two holding out he did not yet have power over. The war of bel is presented as a war between different bel demons born from the destruction of marduk done by yhvh in ancient times. This is based on the real life conversion of babylon to worshipping yhvh, as well as the fact that baals derive from bel, which was originally a title mainly for marduk, but became more widespread. And of course marduk being the gods of babylon, judaism taking it over represents that defeat, and later a struggle against other bels. As such, context is given for why bel demons are presented as opposing the abrahamic appearing side. Baal Zebub. The source for the name Beelzebub is in 2 Kings 1:2-3, 6, 16, written Ba‘al Zəbûb, referring to a deity worshipped by the Philistines. The title Ba'al, meaning "Lord" in Ugaritic, was used in conjunction with a descriptive name of a specific god. Opinions differ on what the name is. In one understanding, Ba‘al Zəbûb is translated literally as "lord of the flies" It was long ago suggested that there was a relationship between the Philistine god, and cults of flies - referring to a view of them as pests, feasting on excrement - appearing in the Hellenic world, such as Zeus Apomyios or Myiagros. This is confirmed by the Ugaritic text when we examine how Baal affects the expulsion of the flies which are the patient's sickness. According to Francesco Saracino (1982) this series of elements may be inconclusive as evidence, but the fact that in relationship to Baal Zebub, the two constituent terms are here linked, joined by a function (ndy) that is typical of some divinities attested in the Mediterranean world, is a strong argument in favor of the authenticity of the name of the god of Ekron, and of his possible therapeutic activities. Alternatively, the deity's actual name was Ba‘al Zəbûl, "lord of the (heavenly) dwelling", and Ba'al Zebub was a derogatory pun used by the Israelites. By the new testament, beelzebub was already seen as a name referring to demons, being something Jesus was accused of drawing power from in order to command demons. As such, in game beelzebub is lumped in with the demons of the chaos side, but is not depicted as a fallen angel most of the time, but rather a demonized bel god. One who seeks to return to his original non demonized form (or various other goals). Another big aspect of chaos is demonized baals / bels, with these forming a heavy part of what chaos is composed of. Moloch '''is the biblical name of a Canaanite god associated with child sacrifice. The name of this deity is also sometimes spelled '''Molech, Milcom, or Malcam. 'Rabbinical tradition depicted Moloch as a bronze statue heated with fire into which the victims were thrown. This has been associated with reports by Greco-Roman authors on the child sacrifices in Carthage to Baal Hammon, especially since archaeological excavations since the 1920s have produced evidence for child sacrifice in Carthage as well as inscriptions including the term ''MLK, either a theonym or a technical term associated with sacrifice. The old testament warns heavily against sacrificing your children to moloch, warning that there would be grave divine punishments if it were done. Although moloch shows up in many games as a demon, the most notable is in strange journey, where Moloch is the true form of Morax, encountered in Sector Fornax, explaining why Morax is of the Tyrant race rather than Fallen, and as one of the main demons of the chaos side. This is consistent with the fact that many demons in many of the games are old gods, especially baals who were seen as enemies of the hebrews. It also gives chaos a darker tone, since even in-game he is shown as a sacrifical altar. '''Baal-Peor, the Moabitish god to whom the Israelites became attached in Shittim (Numbers 25:3), which was associated with licentiousness and orgies. It was worshipped in the form of a phallus. According to the Torah, the Israelites, after spending a short time in the plain of Moab, begin to involve themselves with the Moabite women. Consequently, under the influence of Moabite culture, the Israelites begin participating in the worship of the Moabite gods, and join themselves to Baal Peor, in the Septuagint Beelphegōr, a baal associated with Mount Pe‘or. This was seen as introducing corruption into the isrealites, leading for those who worshiped him to be called to be executed by moses. The biblical references are the only ancient records referring to Ba‘al Pe‘or. There is no way of knowing whether Ba‘al Pe‘or was identical with any other Baal, of which there were several, or was only a local god of Mount Pe‘or. Later commentators tend to suppose that this god might be identical with Chemosh who is called the god of Moab in other biblical texts, and sometimes speculate that the cult of Ba‘al Pe‘or was very licentious. Baal-peor was later interpreted as the demon belphegor in christian demonology, who is one of the seven princes of Hell, who "helps" people make discoveries. He seduces people by suggesting to them ingenious inventions that will make them rich. He is often depicted as sitting on a toilet. Belphecor's most notable appearance in-game is in SMTII where he actually appears working for the center on the corrupt dark-law side. Zayin notes him as a chaos demon, wondering why the center was using him as a general. This is a reflection of the story of the Israelites, and their corruption due to integrating foreign gods. Here showing integration of chaotic influences into a lawful paradigm.